Apparatus for practicing continuous refrigeration



Aug. 3, 1.954 s. H. BERCH ET AL APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUSREFRIGERATIONV Filed July 5, 1950 l0 Sheets-Sheet l INVENToRs $054052 H.552C# MQecz-ur/s' c: aree/cz BY 7 @Trae/Eff Nav .NGE

Aug. 3, 1954 s. H. BERcH ETAL APPARATUSy FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUSREFRIGERATION Filed July 5, 1950 l0 Sheets-Sheet 2 s. H. BERCH vl-:T AL

Aug. 3, 1954 APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION FiledJuly 5, 1950 10 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVIE'NTORS` EEECH C'. 0752/69? Aug. 3,1954 s. H. BERcH ET AL 2,685,176

APPARATUS FOR PRAcTIcING CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION Filed July 5, 1950 l0Sheets-Sheet 4 IN VEN TORS SMUE'L H. BEC'H USH 3, 1954 s. H. BERcH ETAL2,685,176

APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUS REFR'IGERATION Filed July s, 195o 10Sheets-Sheet 5 E@ 6 INVENToRs Aug. 3, 1954 s. H. BERCH ETAL 2,685,176

APPARATUS Foa PRAc'rIcING CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION Filed July 5, 1950 10Sheets-Sheet 6 neo |e| e "o 2' e 12o O O O O 0 O O O C: :O 0 O D :0 O lPL Il@ f f f f 225 las ff//ff/@i//U//fr/U/Hw-IM Aug. 3, 1954 s. H. BERCHET AL APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION Filed July 5,1950 10 Sheets-Sheet 7 will,

Mm m o o0 o ^v. 0 0000000990 IN V EN TORS SHAW/EC H. BEECH MHEC'ZUSUEE/0K Aug. 3, 1954 s. H. BERcH ETAL 2,685,173

APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION Filed July 5, 1950A/oxz 10 Sheets-Sheet 8 FIG. ze.

A -F- -GO |54 INVENToRs All@ 3, 1954 s. H. BERCH E'rAL 2,685,176

APPARATUS FOR PRACTICING CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION Filed July 5, 1950 10Sheets-Sheet 9 En. C90.

o o o o o o 4 o o '4 ooo Ooo IG*- IG arme/EV APPARATUS FOR PRACTICINGCONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION Filed July 5, 195o 1o sheets-sheet 1o INVEN TORS 50k/gr h. BEQC'H @Woes/Eff conduit and under Patented Aug. 3, 19542,685,176 APPARATUS Foa PRAorIcI'No CONTINUOUS REFRIGERATION =-Samuel H.Berch, Beverly Hills, and Marcellus C. Luterick, Montrose, Calif.,assignors, by mesne assignments, to Diced Cream of America Co.,LosfAngeles, Calif., a corporation of Delaware Application July 5, 1950,Seriaf'No. r172,113

(Cl. (i2-'414) quality` of the productits'elf will be impaired: and

furthermore an 'outer casing of ice crystals'may form which are whollyundesirable, particularly when refrigerating packaged ice cream. If, on

the other hand, the center or core of a -food product and particularly amassof icecream has not been lowered in temperature sumeientlyi theproduct will be unstable and the taste of the product 'will not -beuniform.

In connection with thepresentproblemit 'is desirable to provide a methodand means of continuously refrigerat'ing ice cream filled and packagedin cartons disclosed in U. S, Letters Patent No. 2,443,530 entitledCarton for Ice Cream and the Like; No. 2,443,531 entitled Carton forFood Products; also U. S. Patent No. 2,500,922 fentitled Container FlapFolding Apparatus and U. S. pending applications, Serial No. 748,203,led May 15, 1947, now Patent No. 2,550,903.1May 1, 1951, entitledAMaterial Measuring and Dispensing-Device and Serial No. 93,497 filedMay 16, .1949, now abandoned, entitled Sheet Feed-ing Device; `thepresent means being designed tore'- ceive the cartons immediately afterthey are filled and closed and the presentmethod involving thecontinuous conveying and refrigeration of the ice cream or other foodproduct in packaged cartons by a combined refrigeration process ofconduction and convection in the refrigeratin'g operation.

The ice cream cartons are formed, Vfilled'and closed by a machine suchas shown inthe U. S. patents and co-pending applications as abovementioned.

In the operation of this machineit is thel practice to deliver ice creamfrom asuitable ice cream mixing machine and tothe machine through apressure, the ice c-ream-being in a semi-duid state when introduceddntoa formed and opened carton. After the cartonhas been closed it isnecessary to move the closed cartons into a refrigeration unit andhandle the cartons in a controlled manner to insure that the time oftravel of the cartonthrough thefrefrigeration unit is maintained at acritical speed of travel while being subjected to a refrigeration actionbyconduction'-and'convection at a prede'- termined critical temperature.It is the principal object 'ofthe present invention therefore to providefa method and means of receiving iilled cartons of ice cream or-otherproducts requiring critical refrigeration and conducting the lled`cartons through a refrigeration unit at a speed of travel and at atemperature to insure that a 'product of uniform quality, taste andtexture is produced.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a freezing tunneland conveying mechanism passing therethrough said conveying mechanismbeing associated with a timing structure whereby articles to berefrigerated are collected and placed on the conveying mechanism ingroups to insure a maximum capacity of the machine and to insure alsothat the products will be conveyed ythrough the machine and sub-.-jected to a temperature which will cause the temperature of a productto be loweredto a desired uniform degree both as to its interior massand the surface area.

The invention is illustrated by way of example -in the `'accompanyingdrawings in which:

Figure 1 is a view in plan showing the freezing tunnel and indicating inelevation the feeding and Ytiming mechanism.

Fig. 2 isa side elevational view showing the structure illustrated inFig. l and indicating the relationship of this structure to a heatinsulating partition wall.

Fig. 3V is an enlarged view in horizontal section as seen on the line 33 of Fig. 2 and shows the timing and feeding mechanism which isinterposed between a carton forming and iilling stucture and thefreezing tunnel.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view as seen on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3and illustrates the drive for the timing' mechanism.

Fig. 5 is 'a view in section and elevation as seen on the line 5-5`ofFig. 3 and 'shows the interrelation of the timing and conveyingmechamsm.

Fig. 6 is a view in vertical section as seen on the line 6 6 of Fig. 3and shows the end of the freezing tunnel with the conveyors therein andthe associated feeding structure.

Fig. '7 is a View in vertical section through `the frezing'tunnel asseenon the line 'l-'l of Fig. `2 andshows one of the cooling units and themultiple run of conveyor within thetunnel.

Fig. 8-is an enlarged view Ain -verticalsection aeeaive 3 as seen on theline 8-8 of Fig. 3 and shows the defrosting unit embodied in the mainWall of the freezing tunnel and acting to remove frost from the conveyorchain at the point Where the chain passes through the wall.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a portion of Fig. 3illustrating an emergency gate for diverting cartons from a runway alongwhich these are being delivered to a mechanism for feeding said cartonsto the freezing conveyor.

Fig. 10 is a View in vertical section as seen on the line Ill-I0 of Fig.9 and shows the mounting for the emergency gate.

Fig. 11 is a view on the line iI-II of Fig. 5 and shows the arrangementof the carton discharge conveyor belt.

Fig. 12 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken on the line I2-I2 ofFig. 4 and illustrates a mechanism for periodically halting the flow ofcartons carried along the feed conveyor.

Fig. 13 is an enlarged fragmentary detail sectional view taken on theline iiii3 of Fig. 6 and illustrates a chain mounting for a conveyorbucket.

Fig. 14 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken onthe line III- Ill of Fig. 6 and illustrates a means for driving thecarton propeller and expeller mechanism.

Fig. 15 is a fragmentary view in horizontal section as seen on the lineI-i of Fig. 6 and shows the pulley mounting for the carton dischargeconveyor.

Fig. 16 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional detail View takenon the line Ii-I of Fig. 21 and illustrates the cam and pitman rod drivefor the propeller and expeller mechanism.

Fig. 17 is a cross sectional View taken on the line I'l-li of Fig. 16.

Fig. 18 is a fragmentary View in vertical section as seen on the lineIS-IS of Fig. 1 and shows the arrangement of the conveyor chains withinthe freezing tunnel.

Fig. 19 is an enlarged fragmentary view in plan and is taken on the lineI9-i9 of Fig. i8 and shows details of the conveyor .chain structure andthe perforate partitions located therebeneath.

Fig. 20 is an enlarged diagrammatic View showing the present inventionand the associated structures whereby ice cream is made, cartons lledtherewith and Said cartons then carried through the freezing orhardening tunnel thereafter discharged.

Fig. 21 is an enlarged fragmentary diagrammatic horizontal sectionalview taken on the line I2-i2 of Fig. 4 and illustrates the cam actuatedpitman drive for the carton feed mechanism.

General structure Referring more particularly to Fig. 20 of thedrawings, I@ indicates an ice cream freezing unit. It is to beunderstood that the present invention might be profitably employed inrefrigerating other types of food than ice cream but in view of the factthat the invention is particularly efficient in providing a method forthe proper freezing or hardening of ice cream in cartons the presentapplication discloses the invention in this connection.

The freezer I0 prepares ice cream in a semisolid or fluid condition sothat the ice cream may be forced by a pumping mechanism Il into aconduit I3. This conduit leads to distributing heads I4 within which theice cream is measured as to 4 quantity and is then discharged intocontainers which are formed and placed at discharge stations.

A structure embodying measuring and filling mechanism as shown in theco-pending applications as identified in the foregoing, the structuregenerally is indicated at I5 in Fig. 20 of the drawings and for presentpurposes will be hereinafter called a iillerf The filler in thisparticular case is provided with the four conveyor lines indicated at I6which carry the filled cartons or containers away from the conveyingstations as generally indicated at I4.

Referring particularly to Fig. 3 of the drawings, it will be seen thatthe filled and closed cartons I8 are discharged from the conveyor onto acarton run I9 which comprises a pair of spaced guide elements 20 and 2|angular in section; these lead the cartons away from the filler and toan intermediate timing and feeding mechanism as generally indicated at22 in Fig. 20 of the drawings. A part of the intermediate feeding andtiming structure 22 comprises an endless conveyor unit 23 which is showndiagrammatically in Fig. 20 as being led around sprockets 2li, 25, 26,21, 28, 23 and 30.

By reference to Figs. 3 and 10 of the drawings it will be seen that theendless conveyor unit 23 comprises a chain 3| which leads around thesprockets and upon alternate lengths of which chain discs 32 aresecured. These discs provide a relatively smooth surface upon which thecartons I3 may rest. However, sufficient friction occurs between thesurface of the cartons and the disc to insure that under normalconditions the cartons will travel with the conveyor chain. ln certainoperations 0f the machine the travel of the cartons is interrupted andthe conveyor chain SI thereafter continues its travel beneath thecartons without placing any excessive load upon the driving mechanism.

Timing structure The timing of the conveyor chain 3l and the delivery ofcartons from the discharge conveyor I6 is such that four cartons I8 aresimultaneously delivered to the straight run 33 of the conveyor chain 3iwhich run is at right angles to and in the same horizontal plane withthe discharge runs i9 leading from the ller i5. Thus, the cartons willbe placed upon the conveyor run 33 at spaced intervals as determined bythe spacing between the discharge runs I9 in the ller. 'Disposed justabove and on opposite sides of the length of feed chain 3i forming therun 33 is a straight vertical wall 34 and obliquely disposed walls 35,the latter being located just in advance of the respective runs I9. Theoblique walls 35 guide the cartons discharged from the runs i9 onto thediscs 32 of the chain 3l so that these cartons are carried on said discsclose to wall 34. The advance end of the wall 34 and the iinal obliquewall 35 are bent concentrically with the axis of the sprocket 30 andmerge into spaced straight walls 3B and 3l located on opposite sides ofa chain run 36 which lies between the sprocket 30 and sprocket 29.

The Walls 36 and 3l terminate in arcuate wall 'sections 39 and 40 whichare formed concentrically with the sprocket 29 and extend therefrom instraight parallel relation along opposite sides of a run 4I of the chain3|.

Feeding unit A timing structure is associated with the feed- :ber `of-cartons vin an -aligned group with side :faces abutting after which Yagroup of cartons thus arranged are delivered to a freezing tunnel`generallyindicated at 42 in Fig. 2Q of the drawings and which tunnel isdisposed upon the opposite side of a wall from the position occupied lbythe feeding and timing mechanism.

It may occur that in accumulating the cartons to form a group to betransferred into the freezing tunnel that a carton may jam or that itbecomes necessary to divert cartons from the .feed chain 3l and toprevent cartons from en- Atering .the freezing tunnel 42. An emergencygate has therefore been provided as shown in Fig. .9 of the drawing.Here it will be seen that ata .point along the length-of run 36 of thefeed yconveyor chain 3! avchannel shape guide track -44 accommodates thechain and also permits a chain disc 32 to rest upon the upper surfacethereof. A guide track carries the vertical side wall 3'1 of the cartonguide run along one side and Abridgesa gap in the length of the wall 36as particularly shown in Fig. 9.

Emergency gate The interrupted vertical wall section 36 is supplementedby a swinging safety gate 45 indicated .in Fig. 9 of the drawings.

This gate is fitted with a horizontally extending bearing bracket 45which is secured to the gate mid-way of its length by cap screws 46,extending through the bearing portion of the bracket 45 is a pivot pin41 which at its lower end is threaded into a lug 48 carried upon theside of the guide track 44. Wound around the pivot pin l1 is a spring 43which normally holds the supplemental wall section 45 in longitudinalalignment with the .wall section 36, one end of the spring being fixed.to the llug 4B and the other end being Xed to ithe bracket 45. The endsof the supplemental wall section 45 are tapered as indicated at 56 and5| in Fig. 9 of the drawings. The taper is such as to cause the taperedface to rest flat .against the inner face of the vertical wall 31 whenthe member 45 is in its emergency open position. This will cause thecartons to be diverted from the conveyor chain so that they may becaught in a container or move onto an adjacent table. One end of thewall section 36A, adjacent the gap therein, is provided with a stopplate 52 so that when the emergency wall sec- Ition 50 swings intonormal alignment with wall .36, the point of the wall will encounter thestop :plate 52 and will be held in position thereagainst .by the tensionof the coil spring 49. The opposite end 5I of the gate 45 moves againsta supplemental tapered face on the end of the wall section 36 so that asmooth guide surface will be provided.

Group timing mechanism It .is intended that the filled cartons I8 shall,be delivered to buckets carried on endless conveyors within thehardening tunnel 42 and that the buckets shall extend horizontally andhave a capacity of sixteen cartons per bucket so that a large number ofpackages may be hardened ina relatively small space of time. .In orderto ll the individual buckets and to cause the cartons to assume analigned position in close contact with each other, a stop and timingmechanism 53 is pro-vided as particularly shown in Figs. 3 and l2 of thedrawings.

This .mechanism comprises a sliding head 54 modate a follower bar 6i.

held together by fastening plates 56 which are secured to a frame-plate59 of the machine. The opposite ends of the rails 55 and 56 are securedtogether with a tie-bar '60 andspace is Vthus afforded between therails'55 and 56 and between the tie-bar 60 and the 'frame plate v59 toaccom- The follower bar 6| is tted kat its outer end with a plate 62which receives Vcap screws 63 extending through openingsin the plate v62and engaging a presser plate 64. Interposedl between the plate 62 andthe presser plate 64 are'helical springs 65 which are coiled about thecap screws and yieldably urge the presser plate outwardly. Under normalconditions, the presser plate 64 kassumes a position within a gap 65 inthe inner wall section 40 and out of the path of the packages travellingpast said plate. Carried by the follower bar 6I is a follower roller 66which bears against the periphery of a vcam disc 61. The disc is mountedupon the cam shaft 51, the periphery of the disc comprises a concentriccam dwell surface 68 and a concentric dwell surface 69 of lesser radiallength. Thus for a portion of one rotation of the cam disc 61, thefollower bar is forced outwardly toward the conveyor chain runway asdetermined by the dwell portion 68 of the cam and will be retractedduring the interval as determined by the dwell yportion 63 of the cam.The retraction is effected by an expansion spring 10 mounted upon ashaft 1|.

By referring particularly to Fig. 12, it will be seen that the Apresserlplate 64 will be moved outwardly and'across the path of travel of a runof packages I6 and will be held in this position as the conveyor chain3l continues to move beneath the packages I8 resting thereon. Asexplained previously, the lconveyor chain 23 is vprovided with circulardiscs 32 on'their upper lengths. These discs are smooth and under normalcircumstances engage the bottom surfaces of the packages with sufficientfriction to cause the packages to be carried valong the runways in thenormal course of transit through the machine. However, when the presserbar `64 positively engages one of the packages it will force thatpackage outwardly and against the outer rail of the runway rand hold thepackage against movement to pro- 'these packages 4have been .placed sideby side and face to face. The presser plate 64 lthen retracts toallowthe sixteen packages to advance between the guide rails 12 and 13 asshown in Fig. 3 rof the drawings and which guide rails compriseextensions of wall sections 33 and 40 at opposite sides Yof the lengthof conveyor chain indicated .at 4| in Fig. 2l as occurring `betweensprockets 29 Aand 28. As it travels along run 4l, Vthe accumulated rowof .packages .will encounter a stop lock 14 (Fig. 3) which positions theaccumulated row of packages .for ia feeding operation into the hardeningtunnel 42.

Timing unit By reference to Fig. 4 of the drawings, it will be seen thatthe structure previously described is supported on a structural frame.This comprises a base plate 'i5 carrying corner uprights 'i5 and anintermediate upright 1T. bers 18 are provided as bearing supports. Ahorizontal element 82 is attached to the vertical element 16 andsupports the plate 59. A vertical post 83 is secured to the framestructure and as indicated in Fig. 4, supports an upper bearing bracket84. A lower bracket 85 is also supported by this post. These bracketscarry aligned bearings to receive the stop cam shaft l, as previouslydescribed. Suitably supporting the packages as they travel between theside walls 'l2 and 'i3 is a top rail 85 (Fig. 4) which acts to hold theupper flanges of the carton in their folded and closed position. The camshaft 51 carries a sprocket 81 at its upper end (Figs. 3 and s). Thissprocket receives a sprocket chain 68 which is also led around asprocket 89. An idler sprocket 90 (Fig. 3) bears against the chain 88and keeps this taut. The ratio between the sprockets 82 and 89 issubstantially l-l. The sprocket 853i is mounted upon the upper end ofthe main drive shaft 9|. The main drive shaft is particularly shown inFig- 4 of the drawings where it will be seen that its upper end ismounted in a vertical bearing 92 and that its lower end is mounted in abearing 93. Intermediate the ends of the drive shaft are bearings 94 and95. The main drive shaft 9| is fitted with a mitre gear 96 near itslower end which meshes with a mitre gear ST. The latter gear is carriedby a driven sha-ft 98 which is in driving connection with a suitablegear train enclosed within a gear box 99 and driven by a motor |09 whichsupplies power for the entire machine.

The main shaft 89 is also fitted with a mitre gear |0| (Fig. 4.) whichis in mesh with a gear H32, the latter being mounted upon a drivecountershaft |93 (Fig. 2l) which extends hori- Zontally and is supportedin suitable bearings on the main frame. Above the bearing 94 a worm cam|94 (Fig. 4) is mounted von the shaft 9|. The worm cam is formed with athread |85 which is engaged by follower rollers |186 mounted upon acircular disc it? (Fig. 4) keyed to a conveyor drive shaft |03.. Thepitch of the worm cam and Athe spacing of the follower cam rollers IGSare such as to insure that the disc it? will operate intermittently todrive the shaft |68 which carries a conveyor chain sprocket lQ as shownin Fig. 6 of the drawing. The sprocket |69 receives the conveyor chainHtl which leads to the hardeningr tunnel 42. The conveyor chain afterpassing the full length of the tunnel 42 passes around a sprocket I||(Fig. i8) at the rear end of the machine thereafter passing around anintermediate sprocket ||2 and then a sprocket ||3 at the rear of themachine. The sprocket chain is then led forwardly to pass around anidler sprocket I i4 (Fig. 6) at the forward end of the machine. Byreference to Fig. 6 of the drawing, it will thus be seen that theuppermost horizontal run of the chain I6 leads into the machine from thesprocket |69 and that the lowerinost horizontal run leads out of themachine from the sprocket H4. It is to be further pointed out that thesprockets |99 and I |13 are spaced from each other a suiiicient distanceto provide a vertical run of chain 23a, the importance of which will behereinafter explained. The lower sprocket chain ||4 is mounted upon anidler shaft 5.

Transverse mem- Herziening tunnel conveyor By reference to Fig. 3 of thedrawing it Will be seen that the side rail 'i2 extends straight from thecurve in wall i0 to the stop lock 14. The rail 13 is relatively shortand yprovides an open space i3 of a distance greater than the length ofpackages which have accumulated against the stop lock ld. Extendingalong the space indicated by the numeral 'i3' is a guide frame structuresuch as previously indicated and described at 44 (Fig. 10). This ischannel shaped and accommodates the chain 3| while permitting the discs32 to rest upon its upper face. The guide frame 44 is disposed adjacentto the outer side of the frame structure and a cross post 83 (Fig. 6) bywhich it is supported. A cross channel I6 extends horizontally betweenposts 83 and supports a bracket |12. This bracket is of channel shapeand carries a plate I I8 pivoted to the bracket by a pin H9.

The sprocket chain I0 carries transversely disposed buckets IZi) (Figs.6 and 13), each of which are here shown, accommodate sixteen packages ina row and deliver these packages into, through, and away from thefreezing or hardening tunnel 42. The buckets are formed with oppositeend walls |2|, and parallel sidewalls |22 and |23, said sidewalls havingbottom edge flanges |24. The end walls are fixed to the lengths of thechain so that when the buckets are passing along the vertical chain run23a and the packages are to be transferred from the frame d and into thebuckets, the lpackages will be upright this insuring that the bottom ofthe cartons will rest upon the sidewall |23 of the bucket and the coverportion of the carton will register with the sidewall |22 thus insuringthat while the closed carton is within a bucket, it will be held closedeven though during transit through the freezing tunnel the packages willassume upright positions with the packages at times lying on their sidesand in other positions in which the packages are entirely inverted. Asshown in Figs. 6 and 13, the space between bottom fianges |215. of eachbucket I2!) forms an opening |25 to accommodate pusher bars, to bedescribed hereinafter which are used to eject the cartons from thebuckets.

Referring to Fig. 6, a hinge plate |26 is pivoted at |27 to a structuralelement |28 carried by the vertical posts 83. This plate is free toswing inwardly, as indicated by the arrow a in Fig. 6 and is yieldablyheld at its free end by a spring |29 which is secured to overhead rail|36. The closed packages H3 pass beneath the rail 8S and since thefolded cover iiaps are uppermost, this rail holds the package in itsclosed position. The plate |28 will act as a wiper plate while thepackages are in transit from the guide frame i4 to a bucket |26, inhorizontal register therewith and is of a length to accommodate the rowof packages allowed to accumulate on the guide frame 44.

Secured across the top face of the pivot plate i I 8 is a transit plate|3| which has a downturned outer lip at |32 over which packages I8 maybe moved. The opposite edge of the plate |3| overhangs the plate H8 andmay move into overlapping relation with a ange |23a carried on the outeredges of the sidewalls |22 and |23. This insures that the carton will bebrought to register and will properly seat within one of the buckets|29.

Transfer from timing conveyor to hardening conveyor In order toautomatically transfer a group of 9 packages from: the guider frame 44'and' into ai bucket: |:2|l carried bythe chain I'Iill, automatic meansare provided. These. include apushbar |33 carriedby a' seriesfof:auxiliary bar-supporting arms I 34 (Figs. 5 ando). These arms are heldparallel to each other in. a common horizontal planeand by brackets|35.; These brackets are xed upon an' impel'l'er crossbar |3til which ishorizontal and is parallel to. the push bars |33; The impellercross head:"fis mounted for movement in a horizontal planey upon slideA bars |31(Fig. 6).v These guides are secured horizontally between'the verticalframemembers and make it possible for the entire impeller structure tomove back and forth in pushing an accumulatedgroup of packages into abucket |20 of the conveyor chain HB'and withdrawingfrom this operation.

As shown in Fig. 6 of. thedravving, the machine is-equipped with a unitwhich propels an accumulated group ofpaikages into a bucket |21) oreXpels a group of packages from a bucket |29 which has just completed acycle through the hardening tunnel 42. The eXpeller structure movespackages |8 onto a belt conveyor (Fig. 11) |33 which is supported by themain frame. The belt conveyor is led around a plurality of rollers |39,|40, |4| and |||2, idler rollers |413 and IME being also provided; Theserollers are of the detailed construction shown particularly in Fig. 15ofthe drawing, a mandrel |45 being'provided for each roller. Thesemandrels have attened end portions |46 to receive bolts |41 by-whichtheir ends may be secured to the frame. The rollers are tubular. andhollow as defined by a-cylindrical wall |48. At eachof the opposite endsof the roller a ller disc |49 is supplied to provide a mounting for ananti-friction bearing |56. It will be seen by this structure that therollers may be easily mounted in position and replaced when required.

As previously stated, it is necessary'to provide automatic meanstovintroduce a'collected group of packages into a conveyor bucket |26and to expel-a group of packages from a bucket whichA has just completeda cycle through the hardening. 1 tunnel. In order toaccomplish thelatter funcf tion, slidek bars |51 (Fig. 6) are supported hori Zontallyupon the frame structure of the machine. The bars are similar inconstruction and function to the bars illpreviously describedaseniplcyed inconnection with` the cartonpropelling device. Thebars k|5| slidably-carry an eX- peller cross head. |52.Y upon which is mounteda plurality of auxiliary expeller bar supports |53 and an ekpeller bar|54 which is carried at the free end. of said supports. The ex-pellerbar |54 may pass into. the openings |25 in the-buckets |26.

The impeller c-ross bar |36 is firmly secured to an impeller rack bar|55 which extends horizontally and carries a gearv rack |55 as'shown inl Fig. 14 of the drawings. The gear rack |56 overhangs and isninmeshwith a pinion |51 which is carried upon a drive shaft |58. The shaft |58is fitted withanti-friction bearings |59 and |66 which are mounted in`an impeller gear box |5| andan expeller gearbox |521respectively. Theouter end of the drive shaft`|58`is tted with a drive gear box |63carrying an anti-friction bearing |64 within which thev shaft |58 isrotatably supported. lIhe outer end of the shaft |58 carries the drivingpinion |65 against which a pitman rodgearrack |66. restsv and with whichit meshes. The gear rack Ililk is disposed along thee endfface of a:pitman rod |61, the operation of which will be hereinafter described.

move simultaneously in opposite directions and cause theY propellercross head |35' and the eX- peller cross head |52 to move in oppositedirections, one simultaneously advancing a push bar and the othersimultaneously retracting a push bar. It is to be understood that thedrive shaft |53 is fitted at its opposite ends with gear boxes i5! andbut that a drive gear box |63 is only fitted on one end of the shaft |53since only'one pitman rod |51 is necessary for driving the shaft |58.

The drive gear |S 5 of the shaft |53 is provided' to be rotated by thegear'rack |66 when the pitman rod l'i is driven. The pitman rod as shownin Fig. 16 has a straight length and a bifurcated' end formed withparallel arms |1|. These arms extend along runways |12 formed inopposite edges ofa bearing block |13. The bearing block' |13 islmountedupon the horizontal cam shaft H33 and is disposed between a xed bearingV|15 and the endface of a disceshaped` face cam |16.' The arms |1| thusprovidea cam yoke which carries a follower cam roll Vii'which extendsinto a cam groove |18. The cam groove formed on the fiat face of the camdisc |16, the face being normal to the axis ofthe disc. The'carn grooveis substantially elliptical in shape and thus in-V sures that theVpitman rod |61 will be reciprocated as the cam disc |1S'rotates with theshaft' |93. By this movement, theshaft |58 will be caused to rotate agiven distancein one direction and then to rotate a given distance inthe opposite direction so that the push bars |33' and |54 may movesimultaneously to force one group of packages |8 into one bucket |20 andforce another group of packages |13 out of another bucket |26 and ontothe conveyor belt |33.

Hardenng tunnel y It is to be understood that the cartonsforming thepackages |8 are filled with semi-solid ice cream or other material whichis to be refrigerated and that the groups of cartons |8- are to becarried through the hardening tunnel i2` dur--V rated from the housingof the timing unit 22 by' a partition wall i8@ which is preferably' toprovide a heat insulating barrier between the space occupied by thetiming unit 22 and the hardening tunnel 42. Parallel transferpassageways |8| and |52 extend through the barrier |80-and ac-Vcommodate the conveyor chain I0 by which the packages i8 are deliveredinto the hardening tunnel t2 and are delivered from the tunnel 42.

Defroster In practicethe diiference in temperature between theatmosphere on opposite sides of the barrier |99 is such as to cause afrosting action to take place in the air which passes through transferpassageways I9| and |82. This action may be sufficient to cause themoisture laden air to deposit frost which would act to close thetransfer passageways or freeze the conveyor chain and its buckets withinthe transfer passageways so that the machine would have diniculty instarting. This action may take place at night when the machine is shutdown. In order to eliminate this hazard the transfer passageways |9| and|82 are constructed as shown particularly in Fig. 8. Here it will beseen that the barrier |99 is formed with an opening, the lower side ofwhich is lined with wooden timbers as indicated at |33. These timberslie flat across the bottom face of the opening and provide a support fora layer |89 preferably made of fibre glass or other suitable heatinsulating material. Disposed above the layer |94 is a horizontal wearplate |85 over which the conveyor chain ||9 and its buckets |29 pass.Disposed in the opening through the barrier and above the chain is awear plate |89 which extends forwardly through the opening and beyondthe vertical face of the barrier |89. At the rear of the wear plate |96and in the opening within the barrier is a timber |8'I which partiallylines the upper face of the opening and carries a defrosting element|88. This element is carried on the timber |81 and has a transverselyextending compartment |99 to which steam is delivered. The compartmentalso communicates with a pipe |99 which extends downwardly and thenhorizontally in the form of a sinuous coil |9| imbedded within the layerof heat insulating material |84. By this arrangement it will be seenthat a defrosting unit is provided to prevent the passageways |8| and|82 from clogging or freezing.

Refrigeration unit The double conveyor chain as previously stated,carries the packages I8 into the hardening tunnel generally indicated at42. This tunnel is formed with vertical uprights |92 and |93 (Figs. 1, 2and '7). The uprights |92 carry a sheet metal sidewal |94 which is givenrigidity by vertical outside channel elements |95. Spaced from the outersidewall |94 is a sidewal |96 (Fig. '7) which is supported by thevertical uprights |93. spaced from the uprights |93 are uprights |97(Fig. '7) which carry a sheet metal sidewall |98. A pair of horizontalframe bars |99 and 299 (Fig. 7) are secured, in place, the latter on theupper ends of the uprights |92 and the former on uprights |93 at adistance from the upper end thereof. Mounted upon the horizontal framebars |99 and 299 are vertical frame bars 29| and 292. A oor 293 issupported by the frame bars |99 and 299 and is formed with circularopenings 294 each of which accommodates a fan-type blower 295. Mountedupon the top of the tunnel frame structure are transverse beams 299which are secured to the upper ends of frame elements 292 and frameuprights |98. The transverse beams 299 support a sheet metal sealingplate 297 which combines with the sheet metal plates |94, |99, |93 and293 in order to provide in the refrigerating tunnel 42 a transit tunnel299, a fan compartment 299, and an air circulating passageway 2|@ (Fig.'7). The circulating passageway 2|9 is fitted with a refrigerating coilunit 2| through which air passes as it is drawn from the circulatingpassageway to the fan compartment 299 and delivered to 'the' transtitunnel 298. Within the fan tunnel are a series of fans previouslyindicated at 295. These are unit structures each of which include aframe 2|2 which carries a fan driving motor 2|3. These fan units aredistributed at uniform distances throughout the length of therefrigerating tunnel 42, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, and receivecooled air from the refrigerating coil units 2|| which units are spacedalong the fan tunnel and freely communicate therewith. As shown in Fig.'7 each of the refrigerating units 2|| communicates with an ammoniaholding tank 2 I4 through a manifold pipe 2|5 having outlet pipes 2 6and 2 The drain pan of each of the refrigerating coil units is fittedwith a drain pipe 2|8 and a defrosting overiiow pipe 2 9.

The transit tunnel 298 is designed for the purpose of accommodating theconveyor chain ||9 and the buckets |29 carried thereby. Each of the endwalls |2| of each bucket |29 is secured to the sidewalls |22 and |23thereof by rivets 229, and has an outwardly projecting lug 22|, thelatter having a vertical tapped hole 222. This hole receives a cap screw223 which secures said lug to one of an endless series of angle plates224 provided on corresponding links of the double conveyor chain I9.

As shown in Figs. '7 and 13, the double chain ||9 travels along spacedangle rails 225 which are supported on the frame of the tunnel structureand the wall |89 through which said rails extend.

It will be seen that the chain is rove around the sprockets so thatthere will be four substantially horizontal runs of the chain within thetransit tunnel 298 as indicated at ||9a ||9b, ||9c, and ||9d. By tracingthe chain H9 through the transit tunnel it will be evident that whilethe buckets |29 are being conveyed along the runs I |97) and ||9d thebuckets will be overturned. In order to prevent this causing thepackages |8 to fall from the buckets, perforate partitions 227 areprovided close beneath the packages carried by the double chain ||9 inits runs ||9b and ||9d as shown in Fig. 19. These partitions support thepackages I8 and allow free circulation of air through the partitions andalso through and around the buckets |29.

In order to insure that the double conveyor chain ||9 is maintained tautat all times a pair of the conveyor chain sprockets is mounted toprovide a chain pickup. In Fig. 18 of the drawing sprocket is indicatedas being thus mounted. It is fitted with a bearing 228 which is carriedon a sliding plate 229. This plate rests upon a support plate 239 andmay be forced toward a tensioning position by a screw 23| threadedthrough one of the uprights of the tunnel. The shafts of the othersprockets are of course provided with fixed bearings as indicated at 232in Fig. 18 of the drawings.

Operation of 'machine In operating the present invention it will beunderstood that the apparatus is disclosed as being used in hardeningice cream in cartons although the present invention may also be used forrefrigerating other types of food products if desired.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 20 of the drawing, I0 indicates anice cream freezer within which desired ingredients are placed for themixing and making of ice cream. The mixed material is then delivered toa pump and acclaim filling mechanism as generally indicated by thenumeral I5 in the` drawing. The ice cream mixA in a semi-solid state is`forced through the conduit I3 and the two distributing heads It fromwhich measured quantities of ice cream are discharged into cartons whichwhen filled and closed are indicated by the numeral I8. Cartons as shownin Fig. 3 of the drawings are delivered from four conveyors generally.indicated at I5 and onto complementary carton runways IS. These runwayssimultaneously conduct packages I8 to the endless chain conveyor unitThis conveyor unit is a part of the timing mechanism indicated at 22 inFig. 20v and other. figures of the drawings. The packages I8 rest bygravity on thek discs 32 of the chain and are carried around and alongthe guide walls at opposite sides of the chain.v When the flow ofpackages I8 is interrupted by the presser 54 of the mechansm associatedtherewith as shown in Fig. l2 of the drawings the cartons will tend tostack up between the guide walls 36 and 3l' until in this case sixteenpackages have been accumulated in a side to side position of alignment.The cam 61 will then retract the presser plate 64 and will permit thesixteen cartons to travel into an aligned position between the guiderails 'I2 and 'I3 and against the lock stop 14.

It will be understood that when desired the lock stop may be moved sothat it will not be interposed in the path of travel of the packages andwill allow the packages to be discharged from the machine in anemergency operation and to be passed out between the guide walls 'I2 and13.

The cam 81 is driven by the shaft 5i which carries a sprocket 87 aroundwhich the driving chain's'is led (Figs. 3 and 4). It will be understoodthat the sprocket 88 also passes around the chain 89 whichy is carriedupon the upper end of the main drive shaft 9|. The main drive shaft, aspreviously explained, is driven by thev motor |88 through the gearbox 89and the gears 91 and 96- (Fig. 4).

By reference to Fig. 12 of the drawing it will be seen that there is adwell 68 upon the cam 'I'I which will determine the amount of timeduring which the forward feed of the packages I8 on the conveyor chain3| is interrupted. During thistime it is understood that theaccumulatednumber of packages (sixteen in the present case) shall betransferred from the chain 3| and intoone of the buckets |28 of thedouble chain IIB. of packages I3 is in a horizontally aligned positionwith a bucket |28 as shown in Fig. 6 of the drawing and it is intendedto shift the row of packages from their position upon the discs 32 ofthe chain 3| as it stands idle between the railsof the guide member -Iand across the plate |88 into the bucket I 23 in alignment therewith asshown in Fig. 6. This is accomplished by the continuous driving movementof the cam plate I'II;` as it rotates in v the direction of the arrow bas indicated in Fig. 16 of the drawing. This will cause the followerI'I'I which is mounted on the pitman rod IS'I to pass along the face ofthe cam groove |18 as the yoke I'II reciprocates. The pitman rod willalso reciprocate so that a partial rotation of the propeller andexpeller drive shaft |58 will be effected. This will partially rotatethe propeller gear |57 and the expeller gear |68 with the result thatthe propeller gear rack |56 and the expeller gear At the time of thistransfer; a row s 14 rack I |58 (Fig. 14) will oppositely andsimultaneouslyA reciprocate. When this takes place the propeller crosshead |36 will move inwardly in the direction of the arrow `c in Fig.` 6and simultaneously the expeller cross head |52 will move outwardly inthe direction of the arrow d. As has been previously explained, thepropeller cross head I 36 moves a pusher cross head |33 andthe expellerbar |52 moves a pusher bar |54. The movement of the propeller cross head|36 will then force a row of'packages I8 into a bucket I 28 and movementof the expeller cross head 52 will force a row of packages I8 from abucket |28 disposed at the third level below that of the loading level.The packages I 8 removed from the bucket |28 at the discharge level aredelivered onto conveyor belt |38 by which theyv are then carried fromthe machine to a table` upon which the packages I8 may be packed intocartons carrying a plurality of buckets.

It will be understood that the principal purpose of this machinev is toharden the contents of the cartons rapidly and uniformly. This not onlyis a factor in maintaining the packages in a desirable condition duringtransit and during the storage period prior to retail salesbut it isalso desirable in order to maintain a uniform texture of ice cream inthe packages and' a uniform iiavor. Thus', the present machine includesa hardening tunnel 32.to which successive rows of packaged ice cream I8are delivered in the buckets |23 and along the path of transit as shownin Figs. 2, 6 and 18 of the'drawings. The packaged ice cream is carriedinto the harden-V ing tunnel 42. and is subjected to a cooling actionproduced by the low temperature resulting from the coils 2II andtheblowers 285.

Attention is directed to the fact that the hardening or refrigeratingaction in the present case may be produced in two ways-one is by thecirculation of cold air through the coils 2 I I to and through theblower 255 and thence around the packages I8 as they rest upon the runof the conveyor chain as they are carried in the buckets along. theconveyor chains ||I| or rest upon the perforate partition sheets 22'!shown inFig. 19 ofthe drawing. At the saine time the metallic partswithin the hardening tunnel will be reduced in temperature due toconduction and it has been found thatthe combined refrigeration actionby convection and conduction results in the core of the mass of icecream within the packagev being reducedtothe desired low temperaturewhile the surrounding mass is of uniform. temperature and is not frozento a point of excessiveA hardness nor in such a manner as to produceiceY crystals therein. This insures that the taste of the product willbe maintained as desired and that the texture of the product may beestablished uniformly and will be maintained in a satisfactory conditionfor shipping or merchandising. After the packages I8 have been hardenedvas herein described they are-carried out through the lower passageway|52 in the partition wall I8@ and are then moved from the buckets |20 atthe discharge level andonto the dischargeconveyor belt |33.

It will thus be seen that the method for continuously refrigerating aproduct and for packaging the same as there shown provides eicient meansfor handling food products of any character and for insuring that theymay be rapidly refrigerated to a desired temperature and texture in afully automatic operation.

While we have shown the preferred method of performing our invention anda preferred apparatus to be used in practicing the same, it is to beunderstood that various changes might be made in the steps of the methodand that changes may be made in the combination, construction andarrangement of parts or steps in the method by those skilled in the artwithout departing from the' spirit of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to secureby Letters Patent is:

1. A refrigerating apparatus comprising: an endless conveyor having apair of endless spaced conveyor chains; an endless series citransversely disposed buckets each of which is supported at its oppositeends at corresponding points on said chains, each of said bucketsincluding a pair of walls spaced longitudinally along said chains toprovide a conveying and refrigerating chamber in said bucket; out-turnedlips provided along outer edges of said walls; inturned flanges providedalong inner edges of said walls, said lips guiding cartons into saidchamber and said flanges halting said cartons when uniformly extendedinto said chamber; refrigerating means enclosing a major portion of saidconveyor for refrigerating ice cream packed in cartons loaded in saidbuckets; means operating where said conveyor travels outside of saidrefrigerating means to successively assemble and press rows of cartonsinto said buckets as the latter pass a given point; and means operatingto engage and expel rows of cartons, the contents of which have beenrefrigerated in said refrigerating means, just before the bucketscontaining said rows of cartons arrive at the aforesaid point.

2. A combination as in claim 1 in which the portion of said conveyor inwhich said carton row feeding and expelling functions are performedtravels vertically, said carton row feeding means including a feedconveyor disposed on the same level as said feeding point, said feedconveyor being adapted to assemble a row of said cartons at a time onsaid level, said cartons having hingecovers and being disposed inupright position; guide means for holding said covers shut as said rowof cartons is assembled on said feed conveyor; pusher means for pushingsaid row of cartons thus assembled into a refrigerating conveyor bucketdisposed at said level; and means for holding closed the covers of saidrow of cartons as the latter is transferred by said pusher from saidfeeder conveyor into said bucket.

3. A combination as in claim 2 in which said carton row assemblingconveyor is spaced horizontally from a refrigerating conveyor bucketlocated on said feeding level; and a transit plate disposed between saidbucket and said feed conveyor for supporting a row of cartons beingpushed from said conveyor toward and into said bucket.

4. A combination as in claim 3, in which said vertically disposedportion of said refrigerating conveyor rises as the latter travels aboutits endless path; and means for pivoting said transit plate along anaxis spaced a substantial distance from a conveyor bucket on said level,the edge of said transit plate adjacent said bucket overlying an outeredge of the lower of the sidewalls of said bucket so as to be lifted bysaid bucket when the latter is rising during the feeding of a row ofcartons into the conveying and refrigerating chamber thereof wherebysaid row is guided bysaid transit plate into said chamber in spite ofthe rising of said bucket through said feeding level.

5. A combination as in claim 4, in which said means for holding thecovers of said cartons closed during the feeding of a row of the sameinto a given refrigerating conveyor bucket includes a hinge-platesuspended above said feed level and hanging downwardly into the path ofupper portions of the cartons in a row being assembled on said feedconveyor; and a spring connected to said hinge-plate and yieldablyresisting rotation of the latter by said row of cartons as the latter isfed into a bucket positioned to receive the same, the point of contactbetween said hinge-plate and said cartons thus lying close to saidbucket whereby said hinge-plate is effective in maintaining all of thecovers of said cartons closed until a substantial portion of each of thecartons in said row has been extended into said bucket, thereby assuringthat said covers will remain closed by virtue of said cartons ttingsnugly between the transversely spaced walls of said bucket.

6. A combination as in claim 1 in which the portion of saidrefrigerating conveyor in which said feeding and expelling functions areperformed is disposed vertically, and in which said means for feedingand expelling rows of cartons into and from said buckets operate inhorizontal planes closely spaced apart vertically, the row expellingmeans entering between said Walls of each bucket to push a row ofrefrigerated cartons of ice cream out of said bucket; and means foractuating said feeding and expelling mechanisms in timed relation withthe travel of said refrigerating conveyor so that each bucket thusemptied of refrigerated cartons receives a row of unrefrigerated cartonsof ice cream upon said bucket moving the short distance between thecarton expelling level and the carton feeding level.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,637,714 Slick Aug. 2, 1927 1,689,099 Applegate, Jr. Oct. 23,1928 1,708,664 Danberg Apr. 9, 1929 2,064,437 Marasso Dec. 15,. 19362,081,479 Fink May 25, 1937 2,228,999 Birdseye Jan. 14, 1941 2,307,413Loux Jan. 5, 1943 2,385,140 Knowles Sept. 18, 1945 2,402,921 Sharpe June25, 1946 2,415,677 Earp Feb. 11, 1947 2,435,462 Patterson Feb. 3, 19482,494,027 Anderson Jan. 10, 1950 2,532,633 Magnuson Dec. 5, 19502,573,725 Polk Mar. 6, 1951 2,582,789 Morrison Jan. 15, 1952 2,618,131Magnuson Nov. 18, 1952

